Summary: A non-fiction explanation with plentiful illustrations of the causes of World War I and the story of the famous Christmas truce, in which many companies of British and German soldiers agreed to stop fighting for Christmas Day.

Verdict: Touching and informative.

Yay!: Provides a more thorough look at an event that is often just a footnote in the narrative of this war. For instance, I thought I knew all about the Christmas truce, but I had no idea that it was actually insubordination. I also didn't know that it was more popular with the Germans than the Allies, since the Germans are usually made out to be the villains of both world wars, even though the first one was pretty foolish on everyone's part. The photographs of soldiers from both sides exchanging presents and hanging out are a terrific addition.

Nay!: The explanation of how World War I happened seemed to drag on too long before getting to the actual topic of the book. Also, the book winds up with a philosophical musing on whether, had a treaty not been signed, the war would have ended on its own with a massive walkout by all involved armies. The thought is nice, but idealistic and silly. Even discounting crazy people (yeah, you, Hitler, way to ruin the tiny mustache for the rest of the world), as long as we are a competitive species on a planet with limited resources, we are going to have war. Sorry, Star Trek.